Dryers of the character described herein are typically used by hospitals and similar facilities to dry a variety of reusable items such as those identified in the preceding paragraph. The dryers heretofore available for such applications have a number of drawbacks such as a smaller than desirable capacity, uneven temperatures within the dryer cabinet, and a variety of mechanical deficiencies. Also, they generally have mechanical controls; do not offer a choice of drying cycles or drying temperatures; and lack features which would be useful to the user such as temperature and cycle time remaining readouts.